On 24 July, Budimex SA – as the general contractor – signed a contract for the construction of the building and infrastructure of the Museum of Blessed Father Jerzy Popiełuszko in Okopy. The investment, worth PLN 44.27 million gross, will be completed within 21 months from the date of signing the contract, and its completion is planned for the first quarter of 2027.
The newly created museum will be a branch of the Podlaskie Museum in Białystok, run jointly by the Podlaskie Voivodeship and the Minister of Culture and National Heritage. It will be located in the village of Okopy in the commune of Suchowola – the place of birth and youth of blessed priest Jerzy Popiełuszko. The project is implemented under the European Funds for Infrastructure, Climate, Environment 2021–2027 (FEnIKS) Programme.
The museum will be a modern educational and cultural space that will present the spiritual and social heritage of Fr. Jerzy Popiełuszko, a priest and martyr, murdered by officers of the Security Service of the Polish People’s Republic in 1984. The institution will present his pastoral activity, commitment to the defense of human dignity, as well as the idea of “Overcome evil with good” in a wide historical, regional and national context.
The scope of construction works carried out by Budimex includes, m.in, demolition and earthworks, construction of a museum building, installation (including sanitary, electrical and heating), finishing works and development of the area around the facility, including the construction of internal roads
and sidewalks.
“The implementation of this project is an honour and an obligation for Budimex. The construction of the Museum of Blessed Father Jerzy Popiełuszko in the place of his birth is an opportunity to co-create a space of remembrance and reflection on one of the most symbolic heroes of the recent Polish history ,” emphasizes Marek Kułak, Contract Director at Budimex SA.
Budimex SA has extensive experience in the construction of museums and other cultural facilities in Poland, important from the perspective of national heritage. The most important is, m.in, the Museum of Polish History at the Warsaw Citadel, which is one of the largest and most modern museum facilities in Europe. In 2023, a modernized building of the Polish Theatre was also put into use in Szczecin. In September 2023, together with the investor – the State Archives and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage – a new building of the State Archives in Bydgoszcz was put into use. Modern architectural, technological and IT solutions have been used in the building, thanks to which the files collected on 30 km will be able to be stored in conditions of appropriate temperature and humidity.
